Scheduled for Pedagogy Posters, Wednesday, March 31, 2004, 1:00 PM - 2:00 PM, Convention Center: Exhibit Hall Poster Session


The Effect of a PASE Basketball Season on Motor Skill Performance and Health-Related Physical Fitness in Middle School Physical Education Students

J. Scott Townsend1, Derek J. Mohr1, Richard M. Rairigh2, Sean M. Bulger3, Benny Wellborn1, Clay Mohr4, Justin McKenzie4 and Robert Johnson1, (1)Appalachian State University, Boone, NC, (2)Meredith College, Raleigh, NC, (3)University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire, Eau Claire, WI, (4)Avery Middle School, Newland, NC

A pedagogical approach to sport education (PASE) has been proposed as a conceptual framework for designing, implementing, and assessing sport education seasons. Research concerning PASE was previously limited to the affective domain. The purpose of this study was to determine the effect of a PASE basketball season on motor skill performance and health-related physical fitness in middle school students. The participants included one student teacher who delivered all instructional content and eighty-nine sixth grade students. A switching replications design was employed to provide each student with an equivalent educational experience. This design helped to control for threats to internal validity that may be present when an intervention is administered to some but not others within an educational context where there are frequent opportunities for social interaction. A stratified-random sampling protocol based on gender and initial skill level was used to assign each student to one of two treatment orders. The students randomly assigned to the first treatment order participated in an eighteen-lesson PASE basketball season (experimental condition) followed by two nine-lesson multi-activity units in soccer and team handball (control condition). The students assigned to the second treatment order participated in the control condition followed by the experimental condition in an attempt to account for a possible treatment order effect. Each student completed a validated basketball motor skills test including speed spot shooting, passing, control dribble, and defensive movement. Participants were also tested on the following Fitnessgram items: cardiovascular endurance (PACER), muscular strength/endurance (abdominal curl-up and push-up), and flexibility (sit-and-reach). These motor skill and fitness tests were administered on three occasions across the study (pre-, mid, and post-tests). A 2x3 MANOVA with a between-subjects independent variable (treatment order) and a within-subjects independent variable (testing occasion) indicated that there was a significant main effect for testing occasion (p < .001) and interaction for treatment order and testing occasion (p < .001) for both motor skill and fitness variables. Follow-up 2x3 ANOVAs also revealed a significant main effect for testing occasion (p < .001) and interaction (p < .001) for each of the motor skill and fitness dependent variables. Post hoc multiple t-tests using a Bonferroni adjustment determined where the significant differences within- and between-subjects occurred for each dependent variable. The results suggest that the use of this particular PASE instructional season is an effective approach for improving middle school students’ motor skill performance and health-related physical fitness.
Keyword(s): curriculum development, middle school issues, performance

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